I like my money right where I can see it - hanging in my closet. ~ Sex and the City

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Week 1: Fail?




This week started off flawless. (Well, besides the new pair of shoes I purchased at Town Shoes. They were on sale for $39.99 from $100.00 and I have an upcoming birthday party to attend. Instead of a new outfit I just switch the shoes from another. This saves me from purchasing a whole new outfit!)I chose not to bring my wallet with me to school keeping me from buying food and that saved me quite a bit. It all started going downhill yesterday. I had a doctor’s appointment that I was not particularly looking forward to and thought that I would reward myself with a much needed hair cut. The problem is that my hair dresser is located in the mall. I did what I could to prevent this from being a problem. I called my cousin whose girlfriend's parents own a salon, but he neglected to get back to me on time. I attempted to book an appointment with another well known salon in my area but they are not open on Mondays… just my luck. So I went to the one in the mall. I was a bit early for my appointment and thought that I might as well go to La Senza and take a look around. I know some of my co-workers also work there and thought I would say hello and also badly needed a new bra ; so two birds with one stone? She was not there. I proceeded to grab five pairs of underwear, two bras and a pair of pajamas. Not having time to try everything on, I put it on hold and went to the appointment thinking that my desire for them may dissolve with time.


I got my hair cut and $57 later I was late picking up my mother and thought I would come back to pick up the hold on my way to Wellend with Matt; he will keep me in check!


5:30 rolls around and my sister interrupts my Skyping with Miss. London herself Nicole, to tell me that I have to pick her up. “How convenient” I think to myself, “meet me at La Senza” I told her. By this time the girl that I know had been working. She retrieved my articles that were on hold and proceeded to offer me her discount… I then proceeded to use it. $47.00 later and up two new bras and some pajamas (I ditched the underwear in an attempt to save money BEFORE being offered the discount) I ATTEMPTED to make my way to the car…


This was foiled by Kereena insisting that we look inside Aeropostale. “Okay” I think in my head, “I don’t even like this store, it’s not my taste, too casual and preppy. This will be a breeze.“ She headed straight to the sale section and handed me a pair of jeans, size ¾ that were $12.99 with an additional 30%. I grabbed them, along with two polo’s that were $5.99 and a pair of boots regular $60 reduced to $14.99 all with an additional 30% off. I tried them all and loved them. The jeans were half a size to small, tops tight and I had a similar pair of boots at home BUT I wanted them all despite their flaws. Pacing back and forth at the front of the store quivering with uncertainty I called Matt… again and again until he finally answered. (I later found out that he was in the shower and I disturbed him… numerous times….) I told him about every item and then the price. He said that it was all so cheap that it wouldn’t be a big deal to get it all. So I did. Even the pair of jeans that don’t fit, hoping that I can stretch them/lose the 5 pounds to fit in them. It came to $31.00 with tax… not too shabby!


This is the dilemma… is this a failure? Everything was on sale and justified. When does one say no in this situation? All purchases were small… ish. HELP ME!

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

Oniomania: from Greek onios = "for sale," mania = insanity = ME



Oniomania is the technical term for the compulsive desire to shop, more commonly referred to as compulsive shopping (what happens when I go on my break at work), compulsive buying (what happens when just going to work), shopping addiction or shopaholism. Another common version of this syndrome is credit card addiction (something I have not had the ability to participate in since it has been maxed out for many months now), also known as compulsive credit card use. All of these are considered to be either clinical addictions or impulse control disorders, depending on the clinical source.

-http://en.wikipedia.org
-Me

So here it is. My flaw. INVESTING my money into myself and my image in order to successfully progress in life. This is my mindset and also the reason I am here. Two of my many loves require me to save a significant amount of money to see them; that would be my best friend Nicole and the continent where she current resides, Europe; specifically London, England. My whole life I have dreamed of visiting. Within the last two years or so I was given the chance when one of my friends had moved there temporary for school. Permitting I saved the money I was to spend a month backpacking Europe. Obviously that didn't happen and I was left behind in tears. This is my chance! 2010 is mine and Europe's year! And when that trip has come and gone I hear that people save for their future: weddings, homes, cars etc. I am intrigued by these rumors and will look into them. This will chronicle my plans, achievements, failures and justifications for those failures (they are what I am best at.)

Here is my first (of what I am sure will be many) plans to SAVE MONEY!
Recommended by my wonderful boyfriend Matthew (who doesn't want the whole bill of our wedding, house and whole life together sent his way) was to save a chunk of money (for example $250.00) by the 20 th of every month, seal it in an envelope and give it to someone you trust. Almost like another bill. So this is what I will attempt in order to get my life together. This should be interesting...